Photos by Dave Lauberts : on the map, in Google Earth (KML)

pretty!

It nice to know people like this picture :-)

http://www.derbyshireuk.net/curio7.html

On Stanton Moor there are a number of these blocks of granite. They are the harder rock that has remained as the plateau was worn down through the ages. Cork Stone is 15 feet high and has iron foot rests driven into it. It is also covered with graffiti, accumulated over many years.

http://henge.org.uk/ancient-monument-directory/stanton-moor/

Stanton Moor is an area that is found in the Derbyshire Peak District, which has produced many archaeological remains, making it a jewel of the science world, and an excellent resource for peering into the worlds of past civilizations.

The small area is found between Bakewell and Matlock, and very near to the villages of Stanton in Peak and Birchover. Among the many distinctions of the Stanton Moor area are its many erratics and megaliths.

In particular, the Stanton Moor area is best known for its rich Bronze Age archaeological remains, with four stone circles from the time period, the most prominent of which is the Nine Ladies. Most of the circles are overgrown, with few stones, but the Nine Ladies is the most preserved circle, and still receives a fair amount of visitors.

Stanton Moor is also considered an aesthetic, as well as, a spiritual resource, and is often visited by many people on day trips. Due to the varying degree of needs and wants from those who visit the area, English Heritage is working on the creation of a conservation plan, that will meet the requirements from all those who want access to the area.

Also notable to the Stanton Moor area, is the wide range of landscape that it offers with views over river valleys, gritstone moors, and limestone fields. There are also a significant amount of cairns and individual stones, which have been individually named, due to their enormous size. Among those contained on Stanton moor are the Duchess of Sutherland Stone, the Duke of York Stone, the Heart Stone, the Andle Stone, the Cat Stone, and the Cork Stone.

Sandstone in the area was also mined for a period of time, but the quarries have not been open in recent years, despite several attempts, due to vetoes at the national and local levels.

Also worth noting, on the west edge of the Stanton Moor area, is the Earl Grey Tower, which was built by William Pole Thornhill in 1832, with the purpose of dedicating it to the Reform Act of 1832.

from http://www.cressbrook.co.uk/visits/peveril.php

Peveril Castle stands in an impregnable position on a clifftop above Castleton, flanked by the steep side of Cavedale. It is an evocative place, with an impressive view in all directions and sufficient ruined remains to construct a good idea of how the castle looked in its heyday. The castle bears the name of William Peveril, who was granted the title of bailiff of the Royal Manors of the Peak - in effect the King's agent for the Royal Forest of the Peak - after the Norman conquest of 1066. Peveril is thought to have been an illegitimate son of William I.

Peveril created Castleton and in 1080 he fortified the site of the present castle and constructed a wooden keep. Later, these buildings were converted into stone. However, Peveril's son (also called William) became too independent for Henry II, and in 1155 the King confiscated the Peveril estates and the castle has belonged to the Crown or the Duchy of Lancaster ever since.

Henry visited Castleton several times, to hunt and, on one occasion, to meet King Malcolm of Scotland, who paid homage to Henry here in 1157. The court records show that an enormous amount of wine was consumed on this occasion!

The castle fell into disuse after Tudor times, and by the 17th century only the keep was in use - as a courthouse. When this was abandoned the castle gradually became ruined until what remained was restored this century.

You enter the castle up a very steep climb from Castleton, but this was not the original main approach, which went up Goosehill and zig-zagged up the hill to approach along the ridge above Cavedale which reaches towards the keep. Peveril dug a breach in this ridge to create a moat which had a wooden bridge across it. Sadly, this bridge has gone and not been replaced.

The Castleton entrance leads in through the remains of a gatehouse which was built in the 12th century and into the main courtyard of the castle. Around this is the remains of a curtain wall, which was constructed in early Norman times by the Peverils, and includes Roman tiles which presumably were taken from the ruins of the Roman fort at Navio (Brough).

Dominating the site are the remains of the keep, which was built by Henry II in 1176 and is relatively well preserved. The keep was originally about 60 feet high and was faced with fine gritstone blocks, which still remain on the east and south sides. It dominates the view across both Castleton and Cavedale below. Inside the courtyard it is possible to trace the foundations of a Great Hall and kitchens and other buildings, but it is the view across the surrounding countryside which is the finest feature of the visit.

The castle is now in the care of English Heritage.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A625_road

The A625 is famous for scaling the heady heights[specify] of Mam Tor "The Shivering Mountain" which is prone to landslip especially after periods of heavy rain. The road previously wound its way up the south face of the hill but was in constant need of repair due to landslide damage. Below is a brief chronology of events.

A section of the abandoned road In 1847 the Manchester & Sheffield Turnpike Company decided to bypass the existing route up Winnats Pass by constructing a new road at an easier gradient across the Mam Tor landslip. Since the construction of the new road, major road works had to be taken out in 1912, 1933, 1946, 1952, and 1966. On the latter occasion, the road had to be closed for 6 weeks. In 1974 large parts of the A625 were removed during a massive landslide. Major road works were carried out regularly when wet years led to further landslips. A large landslide in 1977 occurred following the long dry summer of 1976 and the wet winter of 1976/1977. The road developed large steps in the carriageway. The road was patched one last time and limited to single carriage way over the affected area. The road was finally abandoned in 1979. The road's course was altered in 2000 to meet the A6 further east, the old route becoming the A6187.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strokkur

Strokkur (Icelandic for "churn") is a geyser in the geothermic region beside the Hvítá River in Iceland in the southwest part of the country, east of Reykjavik. It is one of Iceland's most famous geysirs, erupting reguarly every 4-8 minutes generally.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geysir

Geysir (sometimes known as The Great Geysir), in the Haukadalur valley, Iceland, is the oldest known geyser. The English word geyser to describe a spouting hot spring derives from Geysir. (The name Geysir itself is derived from the Icelandic verb gjósa, meaning to erupt. The English verb gush is probably related to that word.) Geysir lies on the slopes of Laugarfjall hill

The oldest accounts of a geyser at Haukadalur date back to 1294. Earthquakes in the area caused significant changes in local neighbouring landscape creating several new hot springs. Changes in the activity of the Geysir and the surrounding geysers are strongly related to earthquake activity. In records dated 1630 the geysers erupted so violently that the valley around them trembled. In recent times earthquakes have tended to revive the activity of Geysir which then subsides again in the following years. Before 1896, Geysir was almost dormant before an earthquake that year caused eruptions to begin again, occurring several times a day, lasting up to an hour and causing spouts of up to 60 metres in height. In 1910, it was active every 30 minutes; five years later the time between the eruptions was as much as six hours, and in 1916, the eruptions all but ceased. In 1935 a manmade channel was dug through the silica rim around the edge of the geyser vent. This ditch caused a lowering of the water table and a revival in activity. Gradually this channel too clogged with silica and eruptions again became rare. In 1981 the ditch was cleared again and eruptions could be stimulated, on special occasions, by the addition of soap. Following environmental concerns the practice of adding soap was seldom employed during the 1990s. During that time Geysir seldom erupted. When it did erupt, it was spectacular, sending boiling water sometimes up to 70 metres into the air. On the Icelandic National Day authorized government geologists would force an eruption. A further earthquake in 2000 revived the geyser again. Initially eruptions were taking place on average eight times a day. By July 2003 this activity had again decreased to around three times per day. The nearby geyser Strokkur erupts much more frequently than Geysir, erupting to heights of up to 30 metres every five minutes or so. Strokkur's activity has also been affected by earthquakes, although to a lesser extent than the Great Geysir. There are around thirty much smaller geysers and hot pools in the area, including one called Litli Geysir ('Little Geysir').

Descriptions of the Great Geysir and Strokkur have been given in every travel guide to Iceland published from the 18th century onwards. Today the geyser remains an essential element of almost every tourist's itinerary. The place is, together with Þingvellir and the Gullfoss waterfall, part of the most famous sights of Iceland, the Golden Circle.

Ownership of the Geysir area

Until 1894 the Geysir area was owned by a local farmer. In that year the area was sold to James Craig (later Lord Craigavon), a whisky distiller and future Prime Minister of Northern Ireland. Initially he erected large fences around the site and an entrance fee was charged for visitors wishing to view the geysers. The following year, however, Craig appeared to tire of his project and gave the area as a present to a friend, E. Craig, who dropped the entrance fees. Later Craig's nephew Hugh Rogers inherited the site. In 1935 he sold the site to film director Sigurður Jónasson who subsequently donated it to the Icelandic people in perpetuity.

http://www.nat.is/nateng/thingvallavatn.htm

Lake Thingvallavatn is the largest „natural” lake of the country with an area of 83,7 km². Its greatest depth is 114 m and it reaches 13 m below sea level. The greatest length of the lake is 14,5 km and width 9,5 km. Sog, its discharge, is a 19 km long salmon river Olfusa, which tributes to the country's largest glacial river. The average flow of the Sog river is 108 m³/sec. The lake's catchment area is 90% underground and the water from the thousands of cold springs has a constant temperature of 3-4°C the whole year round.

from http://www.randburg.com/is/thingvellir.html

Thingvellir occupies a very special place in the hearts and minds of Icelanders. In 930 the Icelandic Parliament was founded there. Thus the medieval Icelandic commonwealth was established. Many important events in the history of the country have taken place here, e.g. the official adoption of Christianity in the year 1000. Late in the 18th century Parliament discontinued its use of this site and in 1845 it was re-established in Reykjavik, after a bitter struggle led by Icelandic students at the University of Copenhagen. In 1928, Thingvellir became the first National Park in Iceland. Geographically speaking Iceland belongs to two continents, namely Europe and America. These two continents are drifting apart, due to the tectonic plates, at the ‘soaring’ speed of 2 m per century, and that process can be easily appreciated in Thingvellir. The land here is constantly sinking due to the land-masses splitting apart, and thus a huge graben, or rift valley, is forming. The old Parliament site lies at the northern end of lake Thingvallavatn, the biggest lake of the country. The run-off river of the lake is Sogid, an excellent fishing river. Most of the water entering the lake however is ground-water, coming from the highlands to the north of Thingvellir. The only surface river running into lake Thingvallavatn is Oxara, which tumbles in a beautiful waterfall down into canyon Almannagja. Almannagja is in a way the western-most boundary of the great rift valley of Thingvellir. The ecosystem of the lake is surprisingly varied, with many different species of fish and birds. Under the water lies hidden the most spectacular landscape, making diving in the cold lake a unique experience. Lush growth lines the lake; low trees, bushes and flowers.

Þingvellir - Thingvellir and Icelandic Independence On 17 June 1944 Iceland was proclaimed a Republic at the Althing meeting place at Thingvellir. This event marked the culmination of Iceland's struggle for independence, which began in 1262. The independent Icelandic commonwealth was founded in 930 AD, but was lost in 1262, when Iceland swore fealty to the king of Norway. When Norway came under the crown of Denmark in 1380 Iceland followed, and remained under Denmark until 1944. The struggle for independence began in earnest in the early 19th century, and resulted in the restoration of the Althing in 1845, freedom of trade in 1854, a separate constitution in 1874, and home-rule in 1904. Finally a full independence, but under the King of Denmark, was obtained in 1918.

Christianisation of Iceland at the Althingi in 1000 The Christianisation of Iceland was unique. With Christianisation, the whole society turned its back on its traditional belief, Nordic paganism, and accepted Christianity. This happened at the beginning of the Althingi (Icelandic Parliament) in the year 1000 without substantial prelude. Icelanders, for the most part, accepted the Christian faith peacefully and without much preceding strife. The aspect of this Christianisation arousing the most interest is when Thorgeir, a pagan chieftain from the Lake Ljósavatn area, who also held the position of Law Speaker-the only public office in the Icelandic Commonwealth-lay down under his pelt and uttered no word for two days. At the end of this period, he called together the parliament and, on the basis of the law he cited, stipulated that Icelanders should be baptized in the Christian faith. On the other hand, they were allowed to worship pagan gods secretly and practice ancient customs, such as the exposure of children and the eating of horse meat.

The first geologist in the world The political activity at Thingvellir in the year 1000 AD gives a rare glimpse of the contemporary ideas of the Icelanders about geology and volcanic activity, during the great debate of the adoption of Christianity. In general the Icelandic sagas are virtually totally barren of any discussion of natural phenomena, being largely the accounts of historical and political activity, often presented in the form of a historical novel. Islendingabok or Saga of the Icelanders concerns the affairs of the people who lived between about 930 to 1030, at the height of the Icelandic Commonwealth. It includes an account of the historic Althing or General Assembly that met at Thingvellir in the summer of the year 1000 AD. After the Althing had agreed to adoption of the new religion, a messenger brought news of the outbreak a volcanic eruption in the Olfus district, and that lava was flowing towards the farm of Thoroddur, the speaker of the Althing and major proponent of the conversion. The hethins in the Althing then declared that it is no wonder that the gods had been angered by the proceedings of the Assembly, and attributed the eruption to their wrath. Then spoke the chieftain Snorri Godi from the Western District, and with logic and geologic insight laid the matter to rest: "What angered the gods when the lava flowed which we now stand on?" Thus Snorri godi and his contemporaries clearly realized that older basaltic formations, such as the bedrock in the Thingvellir region, were lava which had been formed by earlier volcanic eruptions.